Former Terps wrestler Jimmy Sheptock, whose now an assistant coach at Drexel, is honored with coach Kerry McCoy before the Terps’ 24-10 win over Drexel at the Xfinity Pavilion on Dec. 5, 2015.
For five seasons, Jimmy Sheptock spent much of his time on the first floor of Xfinity Center. Whether it was for practice, workouts or matches, Sheptock would often be seen in the Terrapins wrestling team’s room and its surrounding area.
On Saturday, Sheptock returned to College Park, but he looked a bit different. Instead of wearing the red and black singlets he once donned for the Terps, Sheptock was clad in a dapper gray suit to go along with a navy tie and silver tie clip as a graduate assistant for Drexel, which faced off against the Terps that afternoon.
Before the Terps handed Drexel a 24-10 defeat, Sheptock was honored to resounding applause from the Xfinity Pavilion faithful. During the ceremony, coach Kerry McCoy offered a handshake and a hug to the two-time All-American.
“It’s nice to be recognized in front of old fans who have rooted you on before,” Sheptock said. “It was nice to be back to see familiar faces.”
While the result wasn’t what Sheptock wanted, he praised the current Terps for their winning performance. “It’s nice to see them wrestling hard,” he said.
Sheptock divides his time between studying for his master’s degree in sports management and working with the team. The former 174-pound and 184-pound focuses primarily on weight classes 157 pounds and above.
“It’s always good to see an alum come back, especially when those guys are doing that type of thing,” McCoy said. “Just glad he didn’t have the type of success he usually has in this building.”
During his Terps tenure, Sheptock achieved a number of accolades. In addition to earning All-American status his junior and senior seasons, Sheptock was named a member of the All-ACC team and won the ACC Championship each year between 2012 and 2014. Plus, his 2014 NCAA finals appearance marked the program’s best individual finish since 1969.
“What I did there was special,” Sheptock said. “Feels good to be back in the old stomping grounds.”
While the Dragons didn’t have much success, McCoy was still impressed by Sheptock’s efforts. Drexel’s first victory came during the fourth match when heavyweight Joey Goodhart defeated Youssif Hemida.
Earlier in the season, Sheptock’s squad defeated Northwestern when its three heaviest wrestlers earned victories to propel the Dragons to a 21-20 comeback victory.
“It’s just great what he’s doing there,” McCoy said. “Those guys, they beat Northwestern last week, and their upper weights, the guys that he works with a lot, have been doing really well.”
Sheptock appreciated the pregame ceremony, but he said it felt odd cheering against some of his former teammates.
“At some point you have to graduate and you got to move on in life,” Sheptock said.
While McCoy and Sheptock connected during the ceremony, the coach wanted to avoid distractions once competition began. McCoy worried he’d be reminded of Sheptock’s presence throughout the match. But with the way the mat was set up, he didn’t have to fret.
“The nicest thing is how we had the benches, so I didn’t have to look and see him across from me,” McCoy said. “He was on the side instead.”
